Citi has announced the elevation of Dr Tooba Modassir to chief human resources officer (CHRO) for India and the Indian Subcontinent. Additionally, will play banking HR Advisor (HRA) for the subcluster. She will be stepping into the shoes of Aditya Mittal, who has retired from Citi after an illustrious career of over 30 years.
Modassir’s association with Citi began way back in October of 2008 when she joined as HR business partner (HRBP), consumer banking, Citi India. Three years into this role, she was elevated to AVP-HR business partner, Citi Investment Bank, global markets and private banking.
In July of 2013 she was promoted to VP-lead, human resources strategy, Citi India. A little less than three years into this role came another promotion that made her head of talent, performance management, OD, diversity, Citi India. By April of 2017 she had become lead for digital learning and engagement, Asia Pacific. In this role, she successfully implemented the new learning technology platform across countries in APAC, including pilots and regulatory clearances. Her next promotion put her in the position of senior vice president-head-L&D, talent management and diversity, Citi India CSC, HR advisor, South Asia. Two more promotions later, in November of 2022, she had climbed to the position of director, chief human resources officer, Citi Malaysia, working out of Kuala Lumpur.
In the initial years of her career, Tooba Modassir has worked with Wipro Technologies in the area of talent engagement and development.
With this elevation, Modassir—an alumna of Goa University and the Goa Institute of Management (GIM)— will be expected to oversee the human resources strategy and operations for Citi across India, Bangladesh, and Sri Lanka, that is, for over 34,000 employees. She will continue to report to Arun Mirchandani, Asia South cluster and banking HR head at Citi.
K Balasubramanian, CEO, Citi India, and banking head, Indian Subcontinent, acknowledges how Modassir “has consistently demonstrated the ability to build strong, engaged teams, while aligning HR strategy with business priorities. Her track record of driving transformative initiatives, combined with her passion for people development, will help us effectively leverage our promising and dynamic talent base in the region.”
According to Arun Mirchandani, Modassir’s “appointment reflects our commitment to nurturing leaders who bring a blend of strategic vision, execution excellence, and deep understanding of people priorities. We look forward to her leadership in advancing our growth-oriented HR programmes in the Indian Subcontinent.”
HRKatha congratulates Tooba Modassir on her promotion and wishes her all the best!
